Product Description

It’s the potatoes that make this soup so delicious. All of our potatoes come from Washington and Oregon, right next to our home base. This allows us to make small orders and ensure we’re using the newest crop.

Vegetarian: Prepare without bacon. Use 15 oz. vegetable broth and reduce water by 2 cups. If desired add meat substitute. Add any of your favorite vegetables such as carrots, summer squash, etc.

Tidbits of History< br />
The Columbia Basin has been home to Native Americans for thousands of years. The oldest known location of human inhabitants in Northwest America is found in this area and dates between 9000 and 11000 years old.

Although Native Americans have lived in the basin area for thousands of years white settlers only began to explore the region in 1835. White settlement in the Basin didn’t start until 1883 with the development of the Northern Pacific and Great Northern Railroads.

The Basin area is known for its dry dessert like land. In the early 1900’s people began wanting to take advantage of the wide open spaces and rich volcanic soil located in the Basin. In 1918 two different plans to irrigate the basin were proposed, one was to carry water by canals and aqueducts to the area and the other was to build a dam at Grand Coulee on the Columbia River, the later of course was chosen. The process of building Grand Coulee Dam didn’t start until 1932 when Franklin D. Roosevelt took office in the middle of the great depression.
Today Grand Coulee Dam provides electricity to much of the Northwest. The Dam also provides irrigation water to 500,000 acres of land.

Once the Basin had its irrigation water the uniqueness of the area for growing potatoes was fully apparent. The climate, rich volcanic soil, long growing season and abundance of water make the Basin produce the highest yield per acre of potatoes in the world. There are more than 160,000 acres of potatoes planted annually, harvesting and average of 30 tons per acre, which is almost double the yields in the rest of the United States. The Basin currently produces 20% of all U.S. potatoes.

Even More Tidbits of History:
In the Andes Mountains of South America, Pre-Columbia farmers discovered and cultivated the potato some 7000 years ago. In this harsh climate with poor soil conditions and fluctuating weather, the farmers were impressed with the plant’s hardiness, nutritional advantages and its ability to be stored. The Spanish discovered the tubular in 1537 when they marched through Peru but it was considered to be a poor mans food and was used predominately to feed hospitalized inmates.

It took three decades for the potato to gain popularity throughout the rest of Europe. In France, Antoine Augustine Parmentier, a pharmacist, chemist and employee of Louis XV realized the benefits of potatoes. He found the nutritional benefit of the potato, combined with it productive capabilities, could be a boost to the French farmer. After failing by conventional means to convince the Frenchmen of its many advantages, he decided on a surreptitious plan to make his point.

Parmentier acquired an unproductive plot of ground just on the outskirts of Paris. He planted 50 acres of potatoes and during the day hired a guard to look over it. When evening arrived, the guard was let go and the locals came to see what was of such importance. Many of the peasants believed that this plant must be very valuable and therefore took it upon themselves to “acquire” some from the plot. Soon they were growing the potato in their own gardens.

The potato gained wide acceptance across Europe and soon made its way to North America. Over time, the potato has become one of the major food stuffs of the world.